John Musker is a director that has seen and done a lot in his time spent around animation and with Disney. His career has stretched for decades in which he’s been a part of some of the greatest films that the corporation has ever produced, cementing his legacy and his name in their ranks as one of the absolute best. After 40 years of faithful storytelling however he’s hanging up his director’s hat and moving on. It’s safe to say that he’s going to be missed since he’s leaving behind some big shoes to fill, but after so long he’s definitely earned his retirement and should be proud of the legacy he’s leaving behind.
How many of us can imagine staying at a single place for four decades?
5. He likes to create strong female characters.
This was evidenced most recently by the film Moana in which the titular character is seen to embark upon a quest to save her world by restoring the heart of Te Fiti and battling monsters from the deep while attempting to convince a stubborn demigod to help fix the mess he made. His female characters aren’t always the toughest around but they tend to have an iron will that’s impossible to break.
4. He tends to put caricatures of himself in his films.
A lot of directors like to do this as a signature move as it kind of puts their own personal stamp on the film and makes it just that much more special. You might have to look carefully to see Musker’s contributions in this manner throughout his films but if you look in the right spots you should be able to see them.
3. He’s been a part of several iconic Disney films.
He’s had a hand in creating the films that we knew and loved as children and those that our kids today have come to enjoy. Some of those titles include Aladdin, Hercules, The Little Mermaid, The Princess and the Frog, The Great Mouse Detective, Moana, and Treasure Planet. While not all of them got the same type of acclaim they all have displayed his signature traits such as strong characters and a plot that is both energizing as well as dynamic.
2. He’s been with Disney since the late 1970’s.
He started out as a character animator and began to move up the ranks as he continued to grow in skill and ambition. Eventually he and Ron Clements managed to get themselves hired on as directors and from there the sky was the limits as they started being allowed to take on bigger and bigger projects.
1. He almost always co-directed with Ron Clements.
Musker and Clements were almost always on the same project together as they had grown used to one another and the chance to bounce ideas back and forth was a boon to not only them but the movies they created as well. Many directors tend to go it alone with a small army of people to give them advice and otherwise do as they ask but these two managed to make the co-directing thing work for quite a while.
Enjoy your retirement sir, you’ve earned it.
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